Hertha visit Hamburg as race enters final lap

The race for the Bundesliga title is wide open with just three points separating leaders VfL Wolfsburg from fifth-placed Hamburger SV and Hertha BSC Berlin, FC Bayern München plus a resurgent VfB Stuttgart all lying in between. And the first in a series of critical head-to-heads over the final five rounds is played out on Sunday afternoon when Hertha travel to Hamburg.

Open title talk
Hertha general manager Dieter Hoeness, whose side have a point advantage over Bayern, Stuttgart and Hamburg, is clear. "At HSV a decisive match awaits us," he said. "Everything is focused on that task." That marks an interesting change of tone from the capital, where several weeks ago – when Hertha led the way – all talk of winning the title was taboo.

Hertha case
"The chance of becoming Bundesliga champions has never been this big before," said injured captain Arne Friedrich. "We have an outstanding coach, don't allow many chances, are cool in finishing and always very well prepared tactically. Hertha champions? Why not?" His fellow defender Josip Šimunić shares this view, adding: "After the HSV game, [the suspended] Andriy Voronin will return and Arne Friedrich feels he can play a couple more games this season. I firmly believe we can win the title."

Missing players
Already back from suspension is Hertha midfielder Pál Dárdai, but the unfit Sofian Chahed, Leandro Cufré, Fabian Lustenberger will be alongside Voronin and Friedrich on the sidelines. However, Hamburg have their own share of absentees, with injuries to Marcell Jansen, Bastian Reinhardt, Thimothée Atouba and Romeo Castelen, while Jerome Boateng is banned and Mladen Petrić doubtful with a calf problem. The game comes at a busy time for HSV with a number of midweek knockout ties, most recently Thursday's morale-boosting 1-0 UEFA Cup semi-final first-leg win at Werder Bremen, eight days after defeat on penalties to their northern rivals at the same stage of the German Cup.

Busy schedule
Hamburg's Dennis Aogo, who at Bremen played his 16th game since 1 March, including two Germany Under-21 friendlies, said: "This season has felt outstanding so far. We do not feel that playing a lot of games is a burden, but more a reward for our good performances. We may have played many games, but for a footballer, playing a game is always better than being on the training ground. We had to deal with lots of injuries this season, but we have always found a solution as a team." As for their opponents, Aogo admitted: "I would not have expected to see Hertha at the top of the league, but now we know a difficult task is awaiting us. They want to stay at the top the same as we do, so everything is in place for a really big match."